All You Can Do Is Keep Breathing
by Confuzzle Bug
Summary: The flock members each left to go be with their biological families leaving Max and Total alone. How will Max and Total deal? What will they do now that the flock is gone? Will the flock realize their mistake before it's too late? Rated T to be safe. Fax.
1. Left Alone in the Cold Dark World

**Alright this my first Maximum Ride Fanfiction so don't be too harsh. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Maximum Ride Characters just the plot and maybe some new characters later on.**

"Goodbye Max,"

Fang's voice echoed in my ears. He was the last one of the flock too leave me. Yes you heard me right, the flock left me. One by one they each found their parents. Well actually only Nudge and Fang went too their actual parents. Iggy went to live with his aunt while Gazzy and Angel went to live with their grandparents.

Now it was only me. Well, I guess it was Total and me. The two of us were sitting on a bench in downtown Phoenix, Arizona. I'm guessing that you think Fang lives in Phoenix, nice guess but no. He lives in Sedona, some small little hippy town in the rocks.

"Max?" Total's voice cam from beside me. "I know this is probably a bad time but…I'm hungry."

"Huh? Oh yea…Um, how about Chick-Fil-A?" I suggested, slowly coming out of the trance-like state I was in. Total simply nodded jumping up too his paws.

Both of us were silent the whole way to Chick-Fil-A. We had said very little the past few days. Neither of us had cried, not one little tear. Fang hadn't cried either, no surprise there, but Total and me? We should've been breaking down by now. I figured we were in denial.

_Good guess Maximum._

_Oh goody, you're back. Can't you just leave me alone? _

The Voice had left me alone for the past week but now it had to come back to me at the worst possible time. I didn't have enough fight left in me to deal with it right now. After a few moments of silence I guessed that I had at least an hour of silence before the Voice came back too haunt me.

When we reached the Chick-Fil-A I ordered a bottled water for me and a 5 piece set of chicken nuggets for Total. Normally this wouldn't be enough food for us but my appetite was lost and I'm assuming Total's was too. We ate outside the restaurant, me sipping down my Dasani water, Total nibbling on a chicken nugget.

"Where are we **actually** going, Max?" The black Terrier asked, his voice almost accusing. "Because I know that we were never actually going to live with your mother."

"What are you talking about?" I asked, trying too sound innocent in my lie but failing miserably. Total obviously sensed that I was lying too because his stare quickly turned into a glare.

"Max….Do you know why I stayed with you?"

"Honestly, no." I replied, which was entirely the truth. Everyone knew that Angel was always Total's favorite. It had really torn Angel up even more when Total had decided too continue on with the rest of the flock instead of staying behind with her and Gazzy. She hadn't really thought about it until now because it just never seemed to matter.

"I stayed with you because I felt like after the flock was gone, I had no where to go. When Nudge disappeared I noticed how it affected you. I realized that you felt the same way that I did. Everyone else figured that you would be better off living with your mother, that you'd be happier when you had a place too call home but I knew that your home was wherever the flock was."

Glancing up at Total, I realized he was blurred. I was starting too cry. Oh great. "Total?" I asked. "Hug?" I asked, tears now streaming down my cheeks. Total bit down on his tongue trying to stop himself from letting out a big sob but it came out anyways. The black Terrier jumped into my arms, loud sobs escaping his mouth frequently. Burying my face into his fur and let the tears flow. Denial was over now it was just going to be depression with chocolate.

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**Please review all you have to do is click the little blue button at the bottom of the page :**

**If you liked it please let me know and I'll continue on with the story. Yes I know it was a little short but it'll get longer as I go on.**


	2. Puffy eyes, and Tear Stained Cheeks

**Disclaimer: I do not own Maximum Ride or any of the characters. Maybe some later on but I haven't decided on any new characters yet. I only own the plot currently.**

**Oh also, thank you for all the reviews and story alerts!**

As I said before it was only going to be crying and chocolates from now on. Well technically it was crying, chocolate's _and _chick flicks. Normally Total and I would protest against these types of movies/shows but we were making an exception.

After one hour of crying at Chick – Fil – A, we headed deeper into the heart of Phoenix. Both of us agreed that we deserved to be a little spoiled so we got a room at the Mariott. It's a very fancy chain of hotels if you've never stayed at one before.

So here we were in room 216. Room service had already been ordered and we were stuffing our faces with chocolate cake, creme broulee and some type of pie. We had bought the television on dvd first and second season of Grey's Anatomy. It was brilliant even though it was a drama tv show but the surgeries and blood made it so much cooler. Christina's my favorite character, she's kind of cold hearted and all but I still like her and the fact that Meredith is her _person._ Izzy totally reminded me of Nudge except for the fact that she's blonde, a surgeon and her fiancee died. I mean she doesn't talk a lot but she is sure as hell very optimistic, happy and all for the holidays. Iggy kind of reminded me of Alex Karev, both of them were total and complete sexist pigs if you hadn't noticed. Only difference being that Iggy would never cheat on a girl...Or at least I don't think he would...After all how well did I know him now? I thought that he would never leave me but I guess I was wrong about that. What else could I be wrong about?

_You need them Maximum._

_I do not!_ I screamed at the Voice. It was a lie. I knew it was a lie. The Voice knew it was a lie. _Total_ knew it was a lie, but that didn't really matter because he was pulling the same exact lie. What could I say? I was a liar. I lied.

_Don't lie to me, Maximum. You're just wasting time. Time that could be spent saving the world._

"I don't want to save the world," I whispered aloud, my body starting to tremble.

_But you will, Maximum._

The Voice was right. I wouldn't just sit back and let the world fall to pieces. I couldn't, not when there was something I could do to stop it. Not when there was something I could do to stop Itex from taking away the Flock's really families. Even if I wanted them to be with me instead, I couldn't let them suffer by losing their parents because of my selfishness.

_Fine, I'll try to save the world. I'm not making guarantees. But first I would like to do something…._

"Total, we are going to take a vacation."

"Where are we going?" Total questioned, looking at me with his puffy eyes that had resulted from crying. He was actually looking at me like I was insane. Which I guess he had a right to do that. I was never the first person to say yes to vacation let alone _suggest _vacation. Right now I wanted to go on vacation. No… I _needed _to go on vacation. I needed it if I wasn't going to completely fall apart, which at the moment I was on the verge of doing.

"Las Vegas."

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**Yes, I realize this one was shorter than the last, but it wwas an update wasn't it? Plus I was watching Grey's Anatomy at the time of the writing. I love Doc the dog from that show. Sucks that he died...Well anyways...Don't be expecting fast updates because school just started again yesterday. Yes I know it's already the weekend and I also have Monday off for labor day...but I am going to visit my Aunt and Uncle in Spokane...but that's like a 6 hour drive away from here so I'll be in my dad's truck for like 12 hours...So yes...Expect an update on Tuesday...Maybe one on Wednesday too..I think I'm going to go from Max's Point of View the next chapter but than I'll switch to somebody else so you know what's happening with them...If you have a particular character that you want to know what's happening with them just let me know in a review, I'd be happy to oblige...Once again sorry for the shortness of the chapter. I'll try to do better.**


	3. Planes and Fake IDs

**Ok I know that I'm late on the update but it's longer than usual. : **

I've determined that planes are kind of cool. Yeah sure they make me claustrophobic, yes they could crash into the ground at any moment and they are the perfect places for Itex to try and trap me but they have their upsides too.

_I'm sensing some sarcasm there Max. _The Voice said angrily. It was entirely against my vacation idea. It was even more against the idea of getting to Vegas by plane. Truthfully I had been against the idea as well but Total wouldn't stop begging until I said yes. You try going one hour with Total staring you down with bambi eyes and repeating "Please Max, please!" over and over again! It'll get on your nerves that much I can tell you. Plus it ticked the Voice off which was an added bonus.

A girl's nasally voice on the speakers interrupted my thoughts momentarily. "We will be landing in Las Vegas shortly. Please return all seats and trays to an upright position and turn off all electronic devices."

_**10 minutes later….**_

"Can we stay at the Mirage?" Total asked from over my shoulder.

"No," I replied, scanning over the list of hotels on my very handy Las Vegas map.

"Why not?" He whined, working his way up to the bambi eyes. Oh no, I was not falling for those again.

"Because we're staying at…the MGM Grand" Was my answer, a hotel that I had just randomly picked off the list. Actually I had heard of the hotel before, sounded pretty fancy from what I'd heard but of course the Mirage was probably fancy as well. Only a ten minute fly from here, maybe 30 minute walk.

"But the Mirage has a tiger exhibit _**and**_ a dolphin exhibit."

"And the MGM has a lion habitat." Just from the simple fact that he was Total I had known that he wasn't going to give up so easily. "We can go to the spa."

The Terrier snorted at that suggestion. "It's a spa, Max. SPA! They're not going to let _**me **_in." True. I was already going to have to sneak him into the hotel. It was highly unlikely that any decent hotel in Vegas allowed dogs. Come to think of it, how was I going to get a room? Of course they were going to ask to see a driver's license, they were going to ask for an address and a phone number which I obviously didn't have.

_It's called a fake ID ,Max. _

_What, are you actually going to help? _I asked with almost too real but yet still sarcastic shock.

_Stop being so childish, Maximum. I'm not doing this for you vacation benefits__**. A fake ID will be useful when you actually start saving the world.**_

"What's the Voice saying now?" Total asked, apparently forgetting about our argument but I had no doubt he would bring it up later.

"It's telling me to get a fake ID." Which you know wasn't a half bad idea.

_Head down a block than take a left into the first alleyway. _Yay for me. The Voice was actually giving me specific instructions. I got up slowly than started walking forward. Wordlessly Total followed me, surprisingly he wasn't bombarding me with questions.

Not breaking the habit I listened to the Voice even though its directions led me into a sketchy alley. So we followed the alley for at least 20 minutes before turning off into a not-so-sketchy business building.

"May I help you?" A boy asked from the front counter in the lobby. He looked to be about 19, possibly 20 years old.

"Yes…I'm here for an id." I mumbled. He seemed to understand what I meant by that. Entering a number in on the phone he spoke quickly into the receiver. After a moment of conversing with the person on the other end of the line he spoke to me.

"Mr.Abbott will see you now." He spoke aloud gesturing to a wooden door with his hand. "But the dog will have to wait out here." Total growled at the thought of being called a dog, even though he was one. He liked being thought of more as a person. Nodding at Total I headed over to the wooden door. Twisting the door knob I entered with a serious face, figuring it was better if he didn't think I was some stupid kid.

"Please fill this form out." The man stated simply, handing me a clipboard. He was probably 53, looking ugly with his gray thinning hair and his owl glasses. I snatched a pen up off his desk and scribbled through the form, putting my name as Maximum Ride. Very original for me. He asked for a couple more things and it didn't take long actually for what I had expected, it had only taken two hours to make my ID, social security card, and my birth certificate. I muttered a small thanks and turned on my heels to get the heck out of there. Mr.Abbott had seemed like a nice man but he also seemed like a creeper.

"Let's go Total." I called to the dog and he nodded following after me, head held high, trying to show he still had his dignity.

As we started walking down the Las Vegas Strip I examined my ID more closely. It was actually pretty realistic looking. It had everything, the picture, expiration date and all the information, even if it was mostly fake. It said that I was 18 years old. I don't know if I personally would believe that if I was looking at myself but maybe someone else would.

We passed the Mirage and Total didn't complain, which actually didn't surprise me. It was obvious he was going to ask for something else later, which I would probably say yes to knowing my weakness for bambi eyes.

The walk was only about 20 minutes but now we were almost dead on our feet, well I guess feet and paws. Total easily fit into my backpack, happy to be off his cracked paws. Exhausted and weary, I trudged up to one of the check-in desks.

"One room please," I requested, sliding my new id onto the counter. The lady simply nodded, asked a couple more questions than handed me a room key.

It seemed like forever before we actually reached the room. I didn't even look over the room for any safety precautions like usual. I just unzipped the backpack so Total could jump out than collapsed on the bed, letting blackness surround me.

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**I hope you liked that one. I'll try to update maybe Saturday or Sunday. It should be in someone else's point of view. Reviews always help the writing move along!**


	4. I'm Not Monique

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Nudge: Ooooo!! I finally get too share my point of view! YAY! I mean omg! It's always Max, Max, Max...WHAT ABOUT ME? I'm important too you know! I have feelings so stop excluding me. It's not nice too exclude people. You know it's kind of like bullying. Which means your a bully ConfuzzleBug!

Me: Okay then...Me and my big bad bully self have a story too write so if you could...you know..SHUT IT!

Nudge: Geez you know what?! YOU'RE MEAN! I mean really if I could give out a mean award, it would be too you. You and all your meaness! Ha ha! I just realized that I used mean in two different _mean_ings. Do you get it? Well here I can explain it too you.

Me: ENOUGH! Put a sock in it!

Nudge: EW! But a sock would taste totally gros--

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Okay so you know when you meet your parents for the first time? And it's all exciting and yay?! Well...It's not. Don't get me wrong, they're nice, they love me, they're just all around great! But they are not Max, and I WANT MAX! I WANT THE FLOCK!

"Monique, sweetie? Would you pass me the green beans please?" My mother asked politely. I nodded and pushed the bowl down the table too her. "Monique, could you please pass it next time? It ruins the furniture if you slide it." She added. My mother was sort of a neat person, she loved too have everything in order, all neat and tidy. She has this saying-that Max would never say in like a million years-'A clean home is a happy home'. Our home is clean, but I'm not happy. So really I don't think her saying works. I missed Max... This person was my mother but she wasn't my **mom**. There's a difference. Well at least I think there is. Don't you?

I played around with my green beans for another minute before deciding that I wasn't hungry. Standing up, I pushed my chair in then headed for the stairs.

"Monique, you're supposed to ask if you may be excused before leaving the dinner table." My mother pointed out. A few days ago she had told me that this was one of our house rules.

"My name's not Monique." I mumbled, a tear rolling down my cheek.

"What was that, Monique?" My father asked from the opposite side of the table as my mother.

"MY NAME IS NUDGE!" I screamed, tears splashing on the wood floors as I ran back too my bedroom, slamming the door shut behind me. Locking the door behind me, I flung myself onto the bed, clinging too my pillow like it was my life line.

I don't know how long I laid there like that. Maybe a couple hours. At one point my father came up and started banging on my door telling me that this was not how a young lady, such as myself, should act. He called me childish and immature. I told him too shut up, because I didn't care what he thought. Max didn't think I acted childish or immature so it didn't matter if he did because Max's was one of the only opinions that mattered. The Flock's opinions mattered. So why was I here? I don't want too be here. I thought I had wanted too...

It was almost midnight now, here in the stupid town of Missoula, Montana. I was thinking about calling Max but I decided that I didn't actually know whether she had gotten too her home yet or not. If it was midnight here in Montana, than that meant it was 2:00 a.m. in Charlotte, North Carolina. Would he be awake? Pulling the phone off the hook, I started punching in numbers, but I chickened out an hung up before it made it too the second ring. _I shouldn't wake him._ I thought too myself. Standing there, I stared at the phone for another good five minutes before yanking it back up.

Slowly I punched in a phone number and held the phone up too my ear, the wrong way of course, but I figured that out after a minute.

_Ring._

_Ring._

_Ring._

"Hello?" A sleepy voice mumbled through the other end of the phone.

"Iggy?"

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**Uhh..Well...Yeah I know I'm late...I know I said I would either do Iggy or Fang's point of view. Which you know I tried too do Fang's but it was total crap so I did Nudge's point of view. I know it doesn't seem like the normal Nudge, but the whole Flock is gone, so she's allowed too be like None-Nudge like. **

**It doesn't hurt too press the little review button...I promise. It actually helps! Happy reviewersHappy Writer. Happy WriterMore chapters faster! WHOO-HOO FOR WAMU! Well Whoo-Hoo at least. **

**P.S. I know it's short, I'm sorry! cries**

**P.P.S. For those of you who live in Missoula, well it's no offense. I live in Montana, and it well...sucks..Okay..Not in Missoula though.**


	5. Score One for Aunt Carol

**Tukatarina - I just looked that up in the book after I read your review! Agh! Thanks though! ;)**

**Thanks too all of my reviewers and people who put this story on their story alert.**

**Mkay, this chapter is in Iggy's point of view!**

_Small Recap from previous chapter in Nudge's point of view._

"_Hello?"_

"_Iggy?"_

"Who the heck is this?" I asked, ticked off that someone had woken me up. The voice sounded familiar, and they called me Iggy but my mind wasn't working fast enough too pick up on the name.

"It's Nudge," They replied in a small whisper. "I know it's like really late there but I needed too talk to someone and I didn't know if Max had made it too her mom's house and..and I didn't want too call Fang because I didn't know if he would just be really mad when I woke him up and I didn't want too call Angel or Gazzy because I didn't want them too wor-" Seemed like the same Nudge. Wouldn't close her mouth but there was clearly something wrong.

"Nudge-" I mumbled trying too get her too shut up but she kept talking. "NUDGE!" I sort of whisper-yelled. I didn't want too wake up my aunt, even though it probably wouldn't bother, she'd just say something about her beauty sleep than tell me too carry on. Probably would ask if the person on the phone was my girlfriend too.. She wasn't exactly one of those people that minded their own business. She loved too know everything about everyone.

There was silence on the phone for a minute and I almost thought she had hung up but there was a small hiccup from the other end of the line.

"Ok, Nudge. Could you just like start over? Why do you need too talk to someone? Couldn't you just talk to your parents?" I spoke, while rubbing a small kink in my neck.

"NO! I can't just talk to my parents! They don't get it and I don't want too talk to _them_." She practically screamed into the phone, showing clear disgust for her parents when she talked about them. "I don't want my parents! I WANT THE FLOCK!" Nudge shouted, her voice cracking on the last part. After a minute, I could hear her dad shouting at her and a sequence of loud knocks.

"Nudge, calm down. I'll…I'll.." I started but I couldn't think of a solution. What could I do? "Alright…I'm uhh.. Coming down there..?" I said, more of a question than a statement really.

"Really?" Nudge asked, shocked at my response but it sounded like there was a lot of relief too.

"Yeah. I'll see you tomorrow, I guess."

"THANKS IGGY!" She squealed, the sadness only slightly noticeable in her voice this time. "I um got too go though but I'll see you tomorrow!" There was a click on the other end of the line and she was gone. Probably about too get yelled at by her dad.

I hung the phone up as well and slumped on the floor as realization started too hit. How the heck was I supposed too get to Montana?

**Later in the morning...**

"So, who was the mystery girl you were talking to on the phone last night?" My Aunt Carol asked, a mischievous ring too her tone.

"Just my friend, Nudge. She wasn't with us when my friends dropped me off here because she was dropped off at her parent's house first." I explained, not bothering too use Nudge's fake name or her real name. In her opinion, Nudge _was _her real name. "Actually.. She was wondering if I could go visit her in Missoula, Montana. Today."

"Oh! That sounds like fun! I haven't been on vacation in _months_!" Aunt Carol exclaimed. "Well let's see, go pack your bags, Iggy! I'll go book the airplane tickets!" She told me. Yes, she did call me Iggy, I had requested that she call me that. I didn't want too be called James, it just didn't sound like me.

_Hmm.. That was easier than I thought._

Grabbing the carton of orange juice, I poured myself a cup and trudged up the stairs, grabbing a suitcase from the closet on the way too 'my' room. Fingertips brushing against the wall I found my way back to my room. Yes, I still hadn't memorized the house yet and my Aunt Carol kept moving stuff anyway so there was probably no reason too memorize it.

I grabbed randomly from my dresser drawers, stuffing clothes into the suitcase.

"ALRIGHT! We have two tickets for the 7:50 flight!"

"Isn't it like 6:45 right now?" I called back.

"Yep! So move it or we'll be losing the flight!" Carol yelled back. We weren't exactly in a Carol was the adult and I was the kid relationship. It was more like I was the young adult and my aunt was the kid. My cousin, Bethany wasn't here this weekend, so I got too be the adult. She had given me instructions on how too take care of Carol while she was gone for the week. It's not like Carol was mental, she just acted sort of like a teenager. She had gone skydiving this weekend and had drug me along with her. It wasn't until we were jumping out of the helicopter that she remembered she was afraid of heights.

The even cooler side too Aunt Carol was that she didn't care if I made bombs. She even said I could blow up the neighbor's car if I wanted too, just so long as I didn't blow up her house.

"Ready to go!" I shouted, trampling down the stairs. I followed after her as she headed out of the kitchen, locking the door behind me.

"You know what I love?! It's that feeling when the plane takes off and your stomach flips over!" Carol exclaimed, swinging her suitcase and mine into the trunk of her Ford Escape. She opened up the passenger door and I climbed in slamming it shut behind me. My aunt climbed into the driver side and started the engine. "To the airport!" She yelled in an excited tone.

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**Woo-hoo! Go CAROL! Ok, so anyways I didn't exactly like my Iggy point of view but I personally loved Carol...Anyways reviews please!**


	6. Did You Miss Me?

**Sorry for my slowness, but here it is. **

_Ding-Dong!_

The doorbell went off again followed by my squeal, running too the door I swung it open.

"Iggy! Took you lon-" I started talking but cut myself off as I realized it wasn't Iggy. "Darn't!" I yelled and stomped on the floor like a two year old.

"Uhh..Sorry too bother you, Monique, but is Sarah home?" Dominic asked. Dominic, by the way, was my older sister, Sarah's boyfriend. He was nice too me even at school. Dominic was one of the jocks at our school and Sarah was of course the mean and preppy captain of the cheerleading squad. I might have joined if Sarah hadn't been captain. She pretty much pretended I didn't exist. All of her friends still thought she was an only child.

"Yeah, she's upstairs." I stated, turning a little red in the cheeks. He was pretty much one of my only friends at school and I had just been acting like a two year old a few minutes ago. Sarah has told the whole school that they shouldn't hang out with me because I'm bad news.. Of course pretty much all of them listened too her except for the very few who actually had a mind of their own.

"Alright, thanks!" He said, walking around me and up the stairs.

If you wanted too know, I had been sitting next too the door for the past few hours, waiting. Just waiting, and sometimes talking too myself. It was actually the only thing I could do. My parents grounded me this morning for my little late night conversation with Iggy. I couldn't watch TV, play on the computer or go out with any of my friends. Being grounded stunk... Max would never ground me. She would never have let Sarah be mean too be either... Max would have stuck up for me at school too.. I MISS MAX!

_I wonder how she's doing..._

I bet she's having a really fun time... She's probably glad too be away from the responsibility of taking care of the flock... No... No she wouldn't! She loved us too much. Maybe I could call her.. No, I'll wait till Iggy gets here and see what he thinks.

Slumping back down against the wall, I pushed the door shut. I shoved a small Chips Ahoy cookie into my mouth and swallowed another mouthful of milk. I decided that I liked the chewy kind better then that icky crunchy kind, but Max's and her mom's cookies still beat them all.

I pressed the play button again on my mp3 player and it started shuffling through my Miley Cyrus songs. My favorite song was See You Again. I only put in one headphone so I could keep an ear open for the doorbell. Since it was Sunday I probably should be doing my homework. Skipping up the stairs, I turned off too my room.

"MONIQUE!" Sarah yelled as I passed by her room.

"Yeah, Sarah?" I mumbled, shrinking back from her.

"Hmph! About time! Your friend has been waiting in your room for almost an hour!" She exclaimed, her voice high-pitched and really annoying. My friend? Did she mean Iggy? Iggy was here?!

"WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME THAT EARLIER?!" I screamed at her, I could've already seen Iggy like an hour ago but instead I had been fidgeting around downstairs waiting!

"Hey! Don't yell at me. I didn't feel like coming down too get you. Not my problem! I'm telling mom and dad on you!" She called after me as I raced down the hall towards my room. Reaching for the doorknob and turned it and pushed the door open.

There was a person sitting on my bed. But that person wasn't Iggy.

"Hello, _Monique. _Did you miss me?"

It was Marian Janssen. The Director from Germany.

**Uh..Yeah..It's really short but anyways there it is... Next chapter should be in Iggy's point of view. No..Actually that's a lie. I think it will be in Max's point of view...Hmm..Well... I don't know. **


	7. Mamma Mia?

**Alright, yes I had put her name as Courtney but than one of the reviewers reminded me of Nudge's real name so I fixed it and than I fixed that one chapter so now it has her name right in all chapters. **

**Here's the new chapter...Not so great, just figured I'd leave you hanging on that cliffie with Nudge and I would fill you in on Max too. By the way this is like 5 days later from when Max first got too Vegas. **

"Can we go see the fashion show at the mall next?"

"No, Total. Wasn't the Mamma Mia musical enough torture for the week? I think so." I replied. Yes, Total had me take him too see Mamma Mia. "But Max, it's a classic! We can't _not _go!" He had kept insisting. The only reason I agreed was because I hadn't let him stay at the Mirage.

It was stupid if you wanted too know. Those idiots prancing around in their frilly dresses and breaking into song every five minutes! I hated it, but I had known I would before I even saw it.

"But….We can go get some new clothes; these ones are starting too look pretty bad." I commented, but instantly regretted it. He was going too turn a quick shopping trip into a five hour shopping trip.

"Starting?" He said, looking over my clothes with disgust.

"Oh just shut up and hop in." I retorted, holding open my backpack. Total snorted in contempt but got in anyways. Zipping up the backpack two thirds of the way, I slung it over my shoulder not bothering too be gentle.

"I _**am**_very delicate you know!" Total complained, his voice high and whiney almost like a girl really. It reminded me of the Red Headed Wonder. God, I hated that girl. The way she batted her eyelashes, her squeaky little voice, her face coated in make-up and especially the way she flirted with Fang. Ugh.

"Max? We going yet?" The Terrier asked from behind me.

"Oh yeah but we are only spending one hour there. No more but we can certainly spend less."

"But Max!"

"No buts." I muttered, sliding a room key into my pocket along with the Max Ride card. There'd probably be an ATM in the mall so we could get some cash.

It was around 11:45 when we reached the mall. Took about 15 minutes too get there in a taxi. The taxi had smelled gross. Obviously the driver was a big smoker. I had already gotten about 600 dollars from a variety of ATMs and now I was trying too figure out which store would be best for me too go to.

"Abercrombie and Fitch!" Total coughed from my backpack. I wasn't sure if it was the right store for me but the display window looked alright. Taking Total's suggestion I entered the store. First thing I noticed was the almost unbearable scent of perfume. I walked over too the girl's side and for the most part, Total just coughed out what I should grab or smacked into my back so I would pick something up. I didn't like a lot of the things he suggested but whatever. It would make him get his mind off the Flock so I would just have too live with it.

When we came out of the Abercrombie and Fitch store I had 4 shirts that I liked, 5 shirts that Total had made me buy and 2 pairs of jeans.

Personally I thought that was more than what I needed but Total insisted I needed more. So we also went too Kohl's, American Eagle and Aeropostle. You know, all of the trendy, fashionable and expensive stores. Last night I had woken up four times too hear Total crying over the Flock so I was pretty much letting him have whatever he wanted today.

It probably wasn't the best idea because by the time we got back too the hotel I had bought, 24 shirts, 6 pairs of jeans, 3 pairs of shorts, a suitcase, a pair of flip-flops, a pair of shoes, some socks and some stuff for Total. It was ridiculous but it made Total happy so I guess it was okay.

_Maximum, it's time too start saving the world again. _

Dun, dun, dun! The Voice was here.

_What about Total? Isn't he feeling bad enough?_

_Don't worry Max. I didn't say you couldn't have fun in between saving the world. I'm sure Total will enjoy this one._

"Alright Total. Time too save the world." Total's smile automatically fell. "Don't worry Total. The Voice says you'll like where we are going." I tried too smile enthusiastically.

"Yeah right." He muttered, taking some clothes in his teeth and packing them into the suitcase.

_All right, where too?_

_Barcelona, Spain. I'll give you more information once you're there._

"Okay Total, too Barcelona, Spain."

"Plane?" He asked, jumping up excitedly this time.

"Well no duh Total. What, are we going too fly across the ocean?" I asked sarcastically. "Let's get going." I said, taking over the packing job. Once we were packed, Total automatically took his place in the backpack.

We easily checked out but the bill was a little larger than I expected.

"Total, how much room service did you order when I was out for a fly that one night?"

"A lot…" He mumbled.

"Total!" I complained and people started too stare at me. "Ooops." I muttered, looking down at my feet as I left.

**Alright hope you liked that one...Next one I think will be in Max's POV with a cliffie..than Iggy's POV too help you off on the cliffie from the chapter before this one. Ummm...Than I think it'll be uhh...Fang...But that's just a rough outline so...don't expect that exact outline.**

**OH! And...If you've seen the new Maximum Ride Final Warning, paperback it has a preview of Maximum Ride; Water Wings at the end...just a tip if you want too read the first 3 chapters..**


	8. Falling

**Personally I love the Maximum Ride Series but...I agree with you Chloe Bee, it just didn't really make the cut. Anyways here's the next chapter..**

"So what's the plan?" Total asked, looking up at me expectantly. Why did they always think I had a plan? Oh yeah.. I always said I had a plan.

Taking a sip of my Starbucks drink I pondered over it.

"Well, honestly I'm not sure what we _can _do. We're only a two person team." I stated, being careful too include him as a person.

Right now we were sitting at a table outside of a Starbucks in Barcelona. Mutated freaks need their caffeine too. Sprawled out in front of us was a collection of papers and maps. It was pretty much all of the information we had on Itex and the School. We even had blueprints for the Itex headquarters in Barcelona. Yes, sometimes the Voice can be helpful like that.

"Bomb?" Total suggested. It _was _a good idea but there was only one problem.

"Do _you _know how too make one?" I asked, because I sure as heck didn't. That was usually Iggy and Gazzy's specialty.

"Uhh..No." He replied, lapping his tongue at the coffee in his cup. "How about propane tanks and a match?"

"Hmm..Not bad but the tanks would explode the moment the match touches them and I'm not going too be able to save the world if I'm dead because I was standing too close. There is no way that the match would stay lit if we tried too throw it either."

"How about a flare?"

"What? What the heck would we do with a flare?" I asked. Why the heck would we _want _a flare? It would just let Itex know exactly where we were! Stupid much?

"Throw it at their stowage room. There's bownd too be something that'll expwode in there." He mumbled through a mouthful of poppy seed muffin. Gross, chunks were flying everywhere.

_For a dog, he's pretty smart. _The Voice commented

_For anyone, he's smart! _I retorted. There was no way that the Voice was insulting a member of the Flock.. Well I guess miniature Flock.

"Well…. I don't really like blowing things up but I don't have any better ideas so let's go." Tossing my empty cup into the garbage can I got up and started too walk.

"Where are we going?" The Terrier asked, trying too keep up with me on his short little legs.

"Nearest place that has a flare we can buy."

With flare in hand, Total and I were flying over the Itex headquarters. We had tried going 150 miles per hour but Total kept yelping and complaining about how it was pulling at his face.

There was a really annoying and constant buzzing noise echoing throughout my ears. I couldn't figure out what it was but it couldn't be that bad right?

Total gave me directions on how too get over too the storage room but I corrected them slightly so I was closer too the woods.

"Light the flare!" He said excitedly but it was almost drowned out by the buzzing. That annoying buzzing was even louder now.

"Uh Max?" He asked after a few minutes. "You alright?"

I could swear I would go deaf if that buzzing sound didn't stop! My vision was now blurring up and my head was starting too pound. Not good. We dropped in altitude a bit. I was trying too focus on keeping myself up but that didn't work very well. The pounding grew worse and worse. Before I knew it I was blacking out and falling fast. Really fast, but this time, there was no one there too catch me.

**Ha ha...Now you are stuck on two cliffies...Oh well you'll find out what happened with Nudge and the Director next chapter...Than it's FANG! Anyways...Reviews please...I would stick around and work on that next chapter but...MY FIRST EVER VOLLEYBALL GAME STARTS IN LIKE 30 MINUTES! WOOT! Wish me luck!**


	9. See You Smile

**I am a really happy girl today. My daddy bought me Season 4 of Grey's Anatomy last night. **

**Chocolate is gawd -- ...We lost my volleyball game...AND IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT BECAUSE YOU DIDN'T WISH ME LUCK!**

**Just kidding... But I won the other game today which was against my bestest buddies and they are so good at volleyball.**

**Also...I am currently watching the TWO HOUR Grey's Anatomy Season 5 Premiere. And I have no homework..AND one of my bestest buddies is having a birthday party tomorrow! So I'm very happy...So I decided to make you people happy and update.**

* * *

"What's the address again?" Carol asked for the twenty-fifth time since we had arrived in Missoula. We had been driving around for an hour in a rental car and Aunt Carol refused too ask for directions.

"823 Colter Loop," I replied. I was starting too get impatient with her.

"Excellent! There it is! Told you I didn't need help finding it." She squealed before the car jerked too the left. Were we really here? Lurching forward, my head bashed up against the dashboard.

Muttering too myself, I climbed out of the car.

"Oh! A garage sale! Go on ahead Iggy, I'll catch up with you later!"

"Yeah, whatever." I mumbled, trying too find my way up too the house. It wasn't that bad. All I had to do was follow the feel of the hard sidewalk. When I reached the door, it was already open. Did they always leave their door open or was something wrong? Something definitely seemed wrong. I don't know why, there was just some feeling in the air. Stumbling along I found my way around slowly. "Nudge?" I called quietly, kind of hoping her parents weren't home. If they found me wondering the halls they would probably kick me out.

"Nudge!" I said raising my voice a little louder. I waited for a reply but instead a heard something crash from upstairs. "NUDGE!" I yelled this time.

"IG-" Her voice screeched but it was cut off by another loud crash. Feeling my way up the stairs, I staggered onto the upper floor. God, I _**hated **_blind! Following a small buzzing noise I got closer too where I had first heard the crashes. Oh crud! I knew that noise oh to well.

Flyboys!

"Nudge?!" I called again, she needed too talk so I could follow her voice! The one time I want her too keep talking and she won't! There was a slight bit of silence before a door busted open behind me. Spinning around, I curled my hands up into fists but it was just Nudge.

"Iggy!" She screamed, stumbling over towards me but she let out a groan of pain as a Flyboy smashed into her.

"Get away from her!" I growled, landing a punch in the Flyboy's head. Another one came at me but I landed a roundhouse kick into its stomach. Well, was it a stomach? It was kind of more of an aluminum type slate. Actually it was probably metal but it felt like aluminum too us super strong bird kids. Another grunt came from Nudge followed by some woman's voice.

"Got it! Move out!" She yelled over all the crashes and noise.

Just like that all of the Flyboys were zooming out of there.

"Iggy." Nudge whispered as she hugged me.

"Nudge are you okay?" I asked, running my hands over her to check for any serious injuries.

"Okay? No... Great? YES!" She squealed, almost cutting off my circulation with her hug. After a couple seconds she let go. "I can't believe you came! Okay well yeah actually I can but I just didn't think about when you got here! I don't really have any stories too tell but that's okay because you're here!" Nudge rambled on and I let out a small sigh of relief. Even though she had a gash in her leg, a bruise on her neck and numerous cuts all over she was Nudge again. The All Nudge Channel was back and I'll admit, I had missed it.

"IGGY?!" Aunt Carol yelled from downstairs.

"Coming Aunt Carol!" I hollered back at her. "C'mon Nudge, it's just my Aunt." Taking my hand she led me down the stairs, going slow enough so I could keep up but she wasn't going so slow that it was annoying.

"HI!" She squealed to Carol as we reached the bottom of the steps.

"Hi, you must be Nudge!" Carol replied, automatically hugging Nudge. She did that, she hugged people. Random people. I mean Nudge wasn't random but seriously she just hugged random strangers off the street. No creepers though. "Are you Iggy's girlfriend?" She blurted out, not apologizing or anything.

"Uhh...No." She squeaked, with both of us blushing in utter embarrassment.

"We should go shopping later, you need new clothes." Aunt Carol commented, criticizing Nudge's clothes.

"YES!" Nudge squealed back, jumping up and down with excitement. I even saw a brilliant smile on her face. She seemed so happy to see me. Of course I would be lying if I said I wasn't happy to see her too.

Oh and yes. I did say I _saw _her smile. I'm surprised too.

* * *

**Mwa ha ha! Just kidding... I didn't like that chapter..It stunk..but that's okay, I fixed the cliffy...no..still stinks! And...IGGY CAN SEE SO HA...That's what you get for not wishing me luck on my volleyball game Chocolate-is-gawd...HA!**

**Oh and I don't really have a specific position. I'm in middle school so we don't really get assigned spots but so far I've been middle back... Anyways...Thanks for the reviews! Review again please...**


	10. Suprised? Yeah, We Came Back!

**Okay...I know I took forever like but..Here it is..In Fang's point of view...Ugh...It umm...well to be truthful it Sucks! With a capital S. Anyway...Read...and insult if you must.**

* * *

"Oh Nikky, that movie was scary!" A girl squealed, cuddling up against me. Her name was Tina. I had been pushed into inviting her over by my brother. They kept telling me that I was lucky, because she was the hottest girl in school and she likes me. Still, I didn't feel lucky.

No girl would ever be as beautiful as Max. The same Max that I had voluntarily left. The same Max that I was still in love with. I wouldn't admit that too anyone except myself even though it's true.

"Yo Nick," My brother, Dyllan, called from across the living room. "What do you want too watch next?" He asked, slipping _Van Helsing _back into its case.

"Don't care." I muttered in response while trying to scoot away from Tina.

"All right than, _300 _it is than." Dyllan said, picking the case off the shelf.

"Hey Dyllan, why isn't Natalie here?" Tina asked in her high-pitched voice. Max would hate this girl if she were here. But she wasn't and she probably never would be. Being truthful I hated the girl myself. I just wanted something to take my mind off of Max but as you see that's not working very well.

"He broke up with her on Tuesday." Answered Ryan, my other brother who was actually older than Dyllan and me. They were my only siblings and I didn't like either of them.They were both popular jocks at our school.

"Speaking of girls, who was that blonde with you when you first got here? She was hot!" Ryan spoke up. As soon as he said hot, my fists were clenched up.

"Yeah, she had a nice ass." Dyllan added with a small chuckle to himself. By the time he stood up I was already right in front of him landing a punch in his chest.

"Don't talk about her like that you piece of shit." I growled. I never used swear words but he wasn't going to talk about Max like that. _No one _would talk about Max like that.

_Language Fang! _A familiar voice popped into my head. I knew that voice but I couldn't quite figure it out. It had been a long time since I had heard it. _Could you come get the door now? It's locked, we're cold and I'm really really hungry!_

Dropping my grip on Dyllan, I slowly headed towards the door. Behind me I could hear my brothers muttering to each other about me being an ass but I didn't care much. At least they weren't saying that about Max anymore.

There was a small little knock on the door. With one fist still clenched, I turned the door knob and pulled the door open. I was expecting to see some Itex goon but instead I was greeted with Angel and Gazzy.

"Hi Fang!" Angel said with a smile. Skipping into the hallway she wrapped her arms around my waist in an attempt to hug me. Gazzy on the other hand followed her with his arms crossed. His eyes looked a little blurry like he was trying to hold back tears. I could tell he was still being a brave trouper for Angel.

I didn't realize how much I had missed them until now.

"It's okay Fang, we missed you to." Angel said looking up at me with an angelic little smile. Her cheeks were red and tear stained like she had been crying for a long time but right now she looked really happy like she was excited to see me. "Of course we're excited to see you Fang!"

"Angel, I missed you but you have got to stop invading my mind." I replied with a chuckle. I wasn't the best person for little kids. I didn't make good company and I certainly didn't have a way with comforting them.

"That's okay Fang! We'll call Iggy next, he's just a little better with us than you and he can cook."

Gazzy's eyes seemed to brighten up when Angel mentioned Iggy. Poor little guy had probably been missing his partner-in-crime.

**Anyways tell me what you think... Next point of view might be Max's or...maybe Iggy's or Nudge's because I think I do better with them than with any other characters...**


	11. What Was That Ella?

**Ha...Okay I have no excuse for taking so long...but I did...So cry me a river, build me a bridge, and get over it! Here's the next chapter...It's Fang..and...IT STINKS!**

"Not that I'm not happy to see you two but why are you here?" I asked as Angel and Gazzy sat across from me. Angel was given my permission to use her mind control powers so the house was completely vacant.

Gazzy aimed a nervous glance at Angel but she just shot him a look that said 'I told you so'. It was silent for a few minutes and it looked like they were exchanging thoughts.

"What happened." I demanded to know. I could get impatient if I wasn't given an answer soon.

"Well.." Gazzy started, his voice trailing off. He was avoiding looking at me which meant he thought I was going to yell.

"Gazzy blew up the garage!" Angel blurted out from her spot on the couch.

"I told you not to say anything!" The Gasman exclaimed, giving Angel the bird.

My face showed my surprise for a moment before I had the thought to pull myself together. Before either of them noticed I had my impassive face glued back on.

"You blew up the garage?" I asked, just to make sure I had heard them right. The Gasman gave a small nod and than looked up at me. "Do you have any food?" I'm starving," He commented, glancing towards the kitchen.

"Yeah." Was my reply. One syllable. My vocabulary hadn't expanded much since I had last seen them. Max would have flipped out on him if she was here but I didn't know what to do. Should I yell at him?

_We don't have to tell Max, _Angel added sweetly, skipping off to the kitchen with the Gasman. I followed after them, leaning against the door frame as they scrounged through the kitchen cupboards.

"Can we call Iggy soon?" Gazzy said impatiently, stuffing a Dorito into his mouth. They each took a seat at the table, with multiple plates of food set out in front of them.

"Do you think we could call Max too?" Angel added anxiously. Her voice cracked on Max's name. It must have been hard on her, Max was basically the only mother she had. The thought of calling Max made me smile a little bit, which was a rare occurrence considering I hadn't smiled for at least two months now. Yeah I know I don't smile regularly anyway but Max managed to make me smile somehow.

"Can we?" They both asked at the same time.

"Sure," I replied. "But first you two should probably get some sleep." I added, figuring that's what Max would have suggested.

After a few minutes of arguing the two of them both took my bed for the night while I made a temporary bed on the floor. Tomorrow I would get to talk to Max.

**X X X**

The next morning we all ate breakfast together. When I say all, I'm just talking about me, Gazzy and Angel. They filled me in on what had happened with them the past few weeks, including how Gazzy blew up the garage.

Now we were sitting in silence on the couch while I dialed Dr. Martinez's number. Angel reached forward and clicked the speaker button. Obviously they were going to want to be in on the conversation.

_Ring_

_Ring_

"Hello?" A voice came up on the other end of the line.

"Hi Ella. It's Fang."

"Oh my gosh! Fang! Why are you calling?" She asked, her voice sounding confused. Why would she be confused? "Is something the matter?"

"Can we talk to Max?"

"What? Isn't she with you?!" Ella exclaimed, now sounding thoroughly confused, I wasn't far behind her on that.

"Isn't she with _you_?" I shot back. The pieces were slowly clicking together in my head but the conclusion I came up with didn't make sense.

"I haven't seen her since I saw _all _of you guys last."

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

**Yeah...IT STUNK...As I said before...But anyway...Next chapter...Maybe...Nudge and Iggy?? **


	12. Author's Note READ

Ok.. I realize I haven't updated in forever and you guys probably hate me….. but anyways I am going to get back on schedule! So it would be helpful to me if you guys gave me your opinion on who I should focus on in the next chapter. I just reread that chapter about Fang..and it sucks even worse then I thought it did before, even though I thought it sucked then too. So I was thinking I will put off writing Fang for as long as possible...Or maybe I will try out Angel's point of view, sometime. Anyways, do you guys vote for Nudge & Iggy or Max & Total next???


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